This is a group blog written by reporters and editors of The National newspaper in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

October 21, 2008

Long live the weekend

Anna Seaman

Will someone please tell me what happened to the sanctity of the weekend? How have we become a career-focused, work-centric community where there is no consideration for the rejuvenation needed to stay on form?

Many times I have heard the phrase that people in the Emirates live to work rather than work to live but honestly I have never really felt that. Compared to my life in London people here seemed more relaxed especially regarding time keeping and office hours. However now I am coming to the conclusion that life is fast ordering itself with work at the top and family and friends taking second place.

It is all very well putting in extra hours now and again as a commitment to the company that pays your wages but when working weekends becomes the norm rather than the exception I feel it is a great shame. At the end of the day, a job is a means to an end, family, friends and leisure time are the things that feed our souls.

I was talking recently to a friend who tells me that most of her friends work six day weeks in corporate companies in the city. I know from speaking to bachelors in service jobs that most of them work as many hours as possible in order to send money home to their wives and children. And now as we move towards a 24/7 society, the pleasure of a two-day weekend seems to be disappearing. What happened to good old fashioned family time?

Ok so many people, like me, are single in the city with no family in the UAE and friends who are mostly work associates. Work and pleasure becomes mixed, they might argue. When you are at work you are also socialising they say. But for me, that is a claustrophobic place to be.

This weekend I travelled to Fujairah with some friends. We went scuba diving, played mini-golf and enjoyed the mountain scenery. It was amazing. Although we were only away for two days it felt much longer and the short break was enough to keep me enthusiastic all week. It is what weekends are for. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. Didn’t someone say that once? I’m sure it was for a reason.

Being a journalist I understand more than anyone that the world doesn’t stop for weekends and I have spent plenty of my sacred two days hard at work chasing or reporting on stories. But that only makes me appreciate them more when I get them.

I hope that as more and more of us prioritise work and strive for more in life we don’t forget that sometimes the simple things are what keep us going.